Environmental Justice in Urban River Restoration Efforts

Around the world, globalization processes combined with an enhanced understanding of public health have resulted in former industrial river sites being transformed into amenities that enhance quality of life. These urban transformations can potentially address environmental injustices or perpetuate them. While scholars have documented environmental injustices in the US for decades, less attention has been given to assessing the justice implications of urban transformations, such as river restoration efforts. We draw from the scholarship on environmental justice to investigate the US Environmental Protection Agency’s Urban Waters Federal Partnership (UWFP) program, which aims to restore urban rivers and reconnect disadvantaged communities with their waterways. Through document analysis and interviews with key stakeholders, we find that the UWFP approach demonstrates a synergistic effect through collaboration and the development of local partnerships that helps to realize the concept of “sense of place” as a tool for promoting stewardship. Lessons from this study can shed light on the nexus of justice and river restoration efforts in the US and other regions.